A Gargoyle in St Louis
by Blackcrow-AUS
Summary: After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Violence, Insanity, Creatures, Vampires, D/s,
1. Contingency Plan

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** Blackcrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Betrayal, Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Compliance with HP Cannon:** This story is almost completely compliant with the 7 HP books minus Epilogue. Differences in my world are the alliance with Snape, Dumbledore interfering in HP creature inheritance.  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

* * *

**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter One - Contingency Plan **

* * *

**Monday 4th May 1998 - Two Days After Voldemort Was Defeated **

After Voldemort was defeated, Harry knew he only had a short time to put his plans into place. With Sirius' help (and more surprisingly - Severus'), he'd devised a 'Plan B'. It was his contingency plan for if he could no longer stay in the wizarding world safely. He would be turning 18 in less than three months. He needed to be somewhere safe and secluded by then.

He had distracted his friends from following him by hinting that he was going to visit Gringotts to make arrangements. Then he asked Hermione about jewellers in Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade and in the muggle world. Then he asked where Mr Weasley would be over the next few days and hinted that he might need to speak with him soon.

He left his so called friends behind and made his way to Diagon Alley feeling lighter than ever. If his friends put together his rather blatant misdirections and came up with him getting back together with Ginny, what could he do about it?

He'd known for a long time that many of the people around him would prefer a martyr to a living hero. It was only a matter of time before the wizarding world's media and the ministry turned on him. In his second year at Hogwarts, he'd seen his classmates and teachers quickly come to believe him to be an evil murderer. And in his fifth year, nearly the entire school and wizarding population had thought him a danger to society and a psychotic attention seeker. He had a good idea what would happen if people found out about what he was becoming.

He knew a lot more than his friends thought about their plans. His hearing had always been extremely acute. He had also become skilled at remaining unnoticed in the shadows. He knew that Dumbledore had made many plans for his future. Before his fifth year, he had overhead Mad-Eye, Shacklebolt & Snape at Grimmauld Place. They had been discussing his possible creature inheritance and ways to control him and stop him from becoming the next threat. Hearing their plans had made him freeze and his blood run cold.

In second year, he'd found out that Ron and Hermione were monitoring him and reporting his actions back to Dumbledore. He hadn't done anything about it because he didn't want anyone alarmed. The longer they believed him to be an ignorant pawn, the safer he was and the more time he had to plan. After the Chamber incident, He'd also found out that Mrs Weasley and Ginny had been involved in Dumbledore's plans since before Ginny had started school. Ginny was to be his childhood sweetheart that he'd anything for and the future Mrs. Potter. Just like James and Lily.

He'd laid some false trails in his friends' minds already. Ever since fourth year when the competing schools were at Hogwarts, he'd talked with Ron & Hermione about places he wanted to visit after he finished Hogwarts. He'd asked Hermione about places she'd been with her family and told them how much he wanted to visit France and Egypt.

For the most part, in the beginning, he was only mildly annoyed at them all for trying to manipulate his life. They all wanted Voldemort gone as much as he did. They were watching out for the wizarding world and obviously didn't know him well enough to know that he had no desire for power.

* * *

**October 1995 - Occlumency Lesson**

Midway through his fifth year his naivety was torn away most abruptly. What had originally been a plan for Harry to gain independence from overbearing mentors, and the right to make his own decisions; was to become a fight for his very life. If he didn't escape in time, he could be drugged into compliance, and then either sent to Azkaban for safe keeping or destroyed. Dumbledore's meddling meant that he would never be able to have a life among the Wizarding world population.

* * *

Updated: 20 September 2008


	2. Eyes Wide Open

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** BlackCrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Compliance with HP Cannon:** This story is almost completely compliant with the 7 HP books minus Epilogue. Differences in my world are the alliance with Snape, Dumbledore interfering in HP creature inheritance.  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

* * *

**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter Two - Eyes Wide Open **

* * *

**October 1995 - Occlumency Lesson**

Occlumency lessons with Snape had been going surprisingly well. As Snape had seen the reality of his life and childhood, he had stopped taunting him and mocking his father but still pushed him to learn. This newfound civility didn't however extend outside of Occlumency lessons. During a lesson shortly before the DA was formed, he'd finally managed to push the mental attack out of his mind. He'd then found himself sucked into his professors mind. He was led to a memory from his second year.

* * *

_ memory  
_

Harry stood beside his potions master in the infirmary. It seemed to be after Ginny had been rescued from the Chamber of Secrets. A tiny Harry was sleeping in his usual bed in the infirmary and Ginny was in a bed across the room. Professor Snape stood beside him watching the memory play out. "I am not able to speak about anything that happened here. Just watch." He said.

When Harry thought about it, he couldn't remember spending the night in the infirmary after that incident.

Memory Snape was leaning against the wall near Harry's bed with his arms crossed, studying the sleeping form with a frown on his face. He looked up when Dumbledore walked over. His eyes narrowed and flashed in anger, "What.have.you.done?!" He ground out.

Dumbledore cast a silencing ward around them. He looked at Snape with an eyebrow raised, "He's not strong enough. He can barely keep up in classes; He only survived today because I sent Fawkes to save him. You know what I've done; you brewed that potion after all."

"You've gone too far! There's a good chance that this will utterly devastate his magic. You've condemned us all Dumbledore." The professor growled out.

Dumbledore looked at Severus sharply now "What do you mean? The potion will only release family magics that may be dormant or recessive. He will be more like his parents with their magical strengths."

"The Force de Sang potion will awaken any magical traits that may be dormant and bring forward any traits that are recessive. This will likely include the Potter family transfiguration and defensive talents and Lily's innate magical understanding. However, it will also activate any magical creature blood his family may have had. Depending on what creatures or part creatures are in his line, he may go mad trying to reconcile them."

"In some of the old families, it was used experimentally on squib children. It was initially hailed as a success because in the first year, it often bought forward magical talent in the child. As time went on, however, any latent creature blood that children had was activated. Children experienced creature inheritances from a year after they were given the potion, some as young as six. Invariably, the children went insane trying to reconcile multiple creature inheritances most of the children had to be destroyed or destroyed themselves. It's been illegal to use for more than 400 years and no dark family would even contemplate its use on a wizard."

"Lily Evans was a muggleborn and there were no creatures in the Potter family. The Dumbledores and Potters were long time allies. We would have known."

Severus snorted, "Then you know nothing and you arrogance will be our downfall. There was a reason James Potter and I could not abide each other. And Lily was no more a muggleborn than you are. She was simply the first in many generations that was able to use wizarding magic."

"Charles Potter bound my mind when I found out about the Potter heritage. It's interrelated to their warding and defence magic ability. I can't say much else. Theoretically though, and you should be very concerned about this, if a creature that doesn't wield wizarding magic is in his family's heritage he may be unable to access any of his magic."

Judging by the tantrum Dumbledore threw he believed his friend Charles had betrayed him somehow by not confiding all the Potter family secrets to Dumbledore.

"Damn it! We will perform a binding ritual tonight - that will stop any blood changes. When that's done, you will brew a potion that will halt the development of any non-human wizarding traits. You will use my blood to bind him to me." Dumbledore hadn't taken this reminder of his lack of omniscience well.

The fuming Headmaster looked at Severus harshly, "Severus, if I'm no longer able, when he's no longer needed you must swear to take appropriate action to keep us safe. I will not have some dark creature unleashed."

_ end memory _

* * *

As the classroom they were in came back to them, Harry grabbed the edge of the desk to stop from swaying. He felt like his entire world and tilted off axis. He blinked and looked at the professor with wide eyes. "Why have you told me this?" Harry asked.

Snape had stared impassively at him, his sharp dark black eyes showing nothing. "It's time you knew. Sit down, we need to talk." He simply said.

* * *


	3. The truth will set you free

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** BlackCrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Compliance with HP Cannon:** This story is almost completely compliant with the 7 HP books minus Epilogue. Differences in my world are the alliance with Snape, Dumbledore interfering in HP creature inheritance.  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

* * *

**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter Three - The truth will set you free **

* * *

**October 1995 - Occlumency Lesson**

"Lily and I were very close since before we went to Hogwarts. For a while, I abandoned her because I knew she'd fallen in love with Potter and I was angry. But she was always my best friend and I swore to your mother that I'd do what I could to keep you safe.

"I didn't and don't hate your father or your Godfather as much as we give the impression. I never particularly liked them, and I find Sirius attitude insufferable, he never grew up. After school, your father and I did manage to work together civilly when we had to."

"You can't make good decisions in the future if you aren't aware of all the facts. You have to know the truth. I didn't realise before these lessons how much of how you present is a mask - you would have done well in Slytherin." He said with a wry smirk. "Until this year, I thought you were the ignorant, rash, lazy Gryffindor you portray. If you understand the need to hide, and have been doing so since you came here, then I think you're ready to know this."

Professor Snape went over to a small cabinet and poured himself a drink. He sat down opposite Harry. "I have made some regrettable choices in the past. I was blinded by a need for respect and belonging and disillusioned with the corruption of the ministry, I placed my trust in the Dark Lord, He was very charismatic and his vision for the future of the wizarding world was very compelling. After a while began to see that the vision I'd believed in was a lie and that he only sought power."

"In my anger and sense of betrayal, I went to Dumbledore asking for a chance to make things right. He demanded my obedience and that I serve as his spy in exchange for keeping me out of Azkaban. I now serve two masters and either could destroy me. The Dark Lord won't hesitate to kill me if it suits his purpose. He is aware that I pass information back to Dumbledore but he finds it useful to have a servant within Hogwarts and close to Dumbledore. Dumbledore has the power to have me sent to Azkaban and I am oath bound not to disobey him. Of course, he cannot conceive that I may not be utterly loyal to him and his vision of 'light'. In truth, I am not loyal to either. I don't believe that either deserves the blind loyalty that they both demand. I will do what I must to survive."

"Why haven't you left them? You have the means leave and the ability to disappear? Why haven't you just left both of them?"

"For one, because of the Dark Mark, Voldemort would know that I'm still alive. He certainly won't let anyone leave his 'Glorious Service'. Secondly, I need to do what I can to keep my students safe, no one else will; and finally, I mean to do all I can for you."

Harry sat quietly for some time contemplating what Professor Snape had said. So much made sense to him. He knew that the Professor had saved his life and protected him many times. He and Ron had been so wrong about the nature of this man. He closed his eyes and inhaled slowly.

Harry opened his eyes and looked into his professor's eyes "Potions Master Snape," he began formally, "You have the gratitude and respect of the Potters. I humbly ask your forgiveness for past slights of disrespect; in my childishness I didn't understand."

"If there is any aid my family can give you to ensure you live freely as you wish and deserve - name it and it will be done."

Harry could tell that the words had a profound effect on the Potions Master. Harry had essentially recognised a debt to Him and given the Potions master an ally from a powerful family. Harry could see his discomfort and changed the subject back to the memory.

"Can you tell me more about the Force de Sang potion Dumbledore used on me in second year? And also about the binding ritual and potion. Do you have any idea what I can expect?" He asked.

"Potions and rituals that alter a Wizard's core like this are some of the darkest around, especially when not performed with the subjects, or a blood-kin's, consent."

The professor went to his bookshelf and pulled down a thin tome with the title 'Blood Moste Potente 1378 - 1438' scrawled across the cover in crimson lettering. He opened it to a particular page and handed it to Harry.

"Sit down," He said, pointing to a chair. "Read this." Snape leaned against his desk, and watched him read.

In the middle ages, the potion had been developed by the Ministry of Magic and was touted as a miracle cure for squibs and wizards with weak magic. A few years later, the ministry of magic declared it an illegal potion and banned any mention of it.

2 to 3 years after the potion had been used, 12 children between the ages of 8 and 14 had been destroyed. They had become too powerful to contain and a few had become violently insane (the original Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde). The main cause of the insanity was believed to be coming into a creature inheritance too young. Their bodies and minds could not cope with the changes. Also some weren't able to reconcile multiple inheritances. Some of the destroyed children had shown no sign of insanity but were stilled killed because the ministry was afraid of their potential.

Of the children with multiple creature heritages, some received the traits of a specific creature each birthday, some received partial traits from a number of creatures each year and one received all the creature traits on the same birthday. When the potion was tested on a muggleborn wizard, they experienced no changes.

"You won't find anything about this potion in the library. It's dark and illegal. If the ministry finds out about the potion, I'll be in Azkaban. If they ever find out that you're an unidentified hybrid they won't tolerate you being free. You'll need an escape plan you can activate instantly." Snape said when Harry had finished reading

"The binding potion and ritual are based on Dumbledore's blood and magic. As long as He is alive and for perhaps a year after you will experience no effects from the potion. Any creature inheritance you eventually receive will most likely occur on your birthday. Most likely, the strongest traits will come on the first birthday and probably more changes each year after that until the changes are complete. "

"The potion will bring out at least some of the characteristics of every creature blood you may have. Some characteristics may be minor like a taste for certain foods, a desire to be outside or changing hair colour. You should generally not have any difficulty adapting to or incorporating these changes. Larger changes like Veela attraction or a Banshees cry (should you have either of these) you will need to learn to control. In the case of a creature that is incompatible with your hominid form, such as Dragon or Gargoyle, you may gain something like an animagus form of that creature. "

"For you to not go insane with the changes, you will need to accept all of your creatures and meet their needs. If one hunger is unsatisfied, you will be unbalanced and the warring in your mind may tear it apart. Occlumency will be critical in this. A skilled Occlumens knows his own mind to the point that they can see changes and imbalances immediately. "

"Another advantage you may have over the younger squib children that this potion was trailed on is your age. If a wizarding child is going to come into a magical inheritance, it will happen on their seventeenth birthday. This is because they are physically and emotionally ready to deal with the changes. Some of the powerful magical creatures have mates that ground them. The children were too young to find a mate so lad to go through all the transitions alone. It's possible that finding a mate will keep you sane. They would have to be strong, mentally, and long lived."

"Are you familiar with the Potter and Evans heritages?" He asked.

Harry closed his eyes and thought about what had been discussed at the beginning of the year. "Sirius told me some about what he knew of the Potters, and about the attack on my mum. I've access to the Potter Grimoire so I'm aware of some possibilities. I don't know anything about my mother's heritage, I'm sure. Everyone says she was a muggleborn; but is there really such a thing? Who knows what her family was way back Sirius said she had an uncanny interaction with nature and some precognitive talent."

"I knew her and her sister before Hogwarts She could practically speak with plants and plants adored her. In our third year here, she told me that iron was starting to make her feel ill so we began researching. We started trying to find out about her family. It was difficult because your Grandparents wouldn't talk about the past, other than that they were Welsh from way back and all Evans children were named after flowers. When she turned fifteen she started having precognitive flashes. We strongly suspected that she had faerie heritage. At the time, I had also found out that my father was Dhampir and that I had gained partial traits. Lily wasn't bothered at all."

"She didn't believe that creature heritage or even dark creature heritage make a wizard evil or a threat. It still comes down to choices we make. You may become more powerful and able to cause damage but you still have to make that choice. Creatures don't have the same artificial concepts of Good and Evil that wizards live by. Instinct, family, food are what matter. For a dragon, right is protecting your kin. For a wizard, like Dumbledore, right is not harming your enemies. But really in the last 100 years, the most evil of creatures have all been witches and wizards."

"You need to research Dragon's, Gargoyles, Faerie and Vampires first. Focus on their appetites, living conditions, family/mating habits and weaknesses. You also need to research glamour and concealment spells and ministry laws about creatures and hybrids."

"You've only shown mild Dhampir traits while you've been at Hogwarts, probably not enough for anyone to identify. Your speed and agility in quidditch and your ability to remain unnoticed in shadows are probably a result. You will come into your Dhampir inheritance on your 17th birthday. It will be much stronger because of the potion, there's a small possibility that you will have a need for blood."

"Do not tell your little sycophants about this. You can't trust anyone with this information. If you need to talk to me, I'm sure you'll do something appropriate to necessitate a detention. If you must tell your dogfather; get him to swear not to reveal it to anyone. Also, be aware that our behaviour outside of this room must not change."

* * *

Harry's alliance and friendship with the Potions Master continued to grow throughout the rest of his fifth and sixth years. Harry had continued learning Defence, Survival, Mind Magics as well as Etiquette and Politics from Professor Snape under the pretence of Occlumency lessons and detentions. Their behaviour in everyone else's mind never changed and their public clashes only escalated in vitriol.

Before leaving Hogwarts at the end of the fifth year, The Professor gave Harry a silver pendant of a serpent with Slytherin green eyes, twisted into a figure eight shape. "This is the first item that Lily ever enchanted. I want you to wear this when you go back to the muggles. Lily charmed it for me in our third year it deflects ill-will and violence away from the wearer. It has a mild 'notice me not' and 'muggle repellent' charm on it. Things should be easier if they simply ignore you."

* * *

Updated: 20 September 2008


	4. The Potters

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** BlackCrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Compliance with HP Cannon:** This story is almost completely compliant with the 7 HP books minus Epilogue. Differences in my world are the alliance with Snape, Dumbledore interfering in HP creature inheritance.  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

* * *

**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter Four - The Potters **

* * *

**August 1995 - Grimmauld Place**

In the summer after his 15th birthday and before his 5th year at Hogwarts, Harry spent a lot of time with his godfather Sirius Black - whenever they could avoid well meaning friends and interfering busybodies. They'd talked about the wizarding world and Harry's place in it. Sirius told Harry all he knew about the Potters and the Evans families and about his parents in Hogwarts.

Harry gave Sirius a very frank and honest rendition of his life so far. He talked about his abusive childhood with the Dursleys, about Hagrid's exceedingly biased explanation of the Wizarding world and turning up to Hogwarts completely ignorant of his family position. Getting manipulated into Gryffindor. He described how he found out about the manipulations of Dumbledore and the betrayal of his so called friends and Mrs Weasley. He mentioned how he knew that he'd been funding Ron and Ginny's Hogwarts education from his trust vault since Mrs Weasley had asked for his key to make a withdrawal for him in second year. And how much he hated that both Ron and Ginny wore better clothing than he did and yet Ron was still jealous of him.

He'd decided to take no action as he'd rather everyone believe him an incapable child than alert them to the fact that he was capable of independent thought. He told Sirius that he'd just accepted everyones lies and manipulations and was playing dumb until he could get out of Hogwarts and find his freedom. He vented all his frustrations with Dumbledore, his friends and the wizarding world and he swore he had no intention of marrying a Weasley or remaining in the Wizarding world after Hogwarts and if he did either, to check him for potions.

So much of what Harry told Sirius he'd never spoken of to anyone. He knew he was taking a risk but at the age of 15, never having put his trust in anyone longer than it took to get to know them, Harry decided he needed help. Eventually, He was done talking and Sirius had just held him. Part of Harry just wanted to cry but he couldn't. Having told Sirius everything and not being rejected gave Harry some hope that he finally had someone on his side and that he may get out of this alive.

* * *

With Sirius help, he had set up some assurances so that his actions couldn't be manipulated.

He made a number of arrangements with Gringotts. Firstly, in the case of his death he wrote a will so that there was no way that those who had betrayed him or stolen from would gain from his death. It would be read exactly one year after his reported death. In the event that he drastically updated the will in future, he would be tested by the goblins for every known mind control potion and spell. Secondly in the event of his marriage, he made arrangements that he would be tested for every known love potion and mind control spell, before his spouse would be able to access the estate.

Another (rather embarrassing) recommendation that Sirius made so that Harry couldn't be trapped into an unwanted marriage was the use of a male contraception spell that would be completely effective until reversed. Blushing, he decided to go ahead with it after deciding that yes, Ginny and Mrs Weasley might be that persistant.

-

Sirius had convinced Harry that he needed a 'Emergency Plan B'. They planned an escape route in case anything went wrong. Sirius made Harry swear to tell none of his friends or members of the order. Together they devised a new muggle identity using magic and contacts Sirius had made while on the run. Harry used his family's welsh heritage, to select a new name "Bran Evans" - A muggle who had completed 'A' levels getting decent results and who lived and worked in Cardiff. He had dual citizenship with the USA since his family had moved there when he was a child. He owned a flat in Cardiff, left to him by his parents. He had bank accounts with a transaction history, a credit history, a tax history and medical history in both countries. His passport showed regular trips between the UK and USA.

* * *

The night after Harry's trial in front of the Wizengamot, Sirius and Harry were sitting quietly in the well warded library.

"First," Sirius said, "I need your permission to cast secrecy net around this room. It will stop any eavesdropping - magical or otherwise. It will also ensure that when we leave, no-one can coerce either of us to talk about what we discuss in here. What I need to tell you is for Potters ears only. I only know these things because I'm your godfather."

"About four months before you were born, there was a death-eater attack in a muggle village near Godrics Hollow. Lily was there shopping and she was attacked and bitten by a vampire, a day-walker. She killed it before it drained her. But she collapsed and lost a lot of blood. Snape was there that day. When the Death Eaters retreated, He bought her back to Potter Hall where your grandparents lived. "

"Usually it takes three bites to turn someone. But the vampire that attacked Lily was strong enough to be a day walker. There was a high chance that Lily would turn. I was there with James and you grandfather and Snape. Between your grandfather and James they managed to temporarily slow the vampiric infection. With Snape's potions, he managed to heal the blood-loss and physical damage and stabilised her. She survived."

"No-one knew what possible impact the attack would have on you. Occasionally a child can be born as a part vampire or Dhampir. In theory, a Dhampir has all the strengths of a vampire without needing blood to survive. They are stronger, faster, have keener eyesight and hearing and they may have some mind magics, or shadow magics. You could either have all, some or none of the Dhampir traits. We probably won't know wholly until your seventeenth birthday."

"No-one else knew about the attack. Even Mooney never found out - we didn't know how he'd react since werewolves and vampires are natural rivals at an instinctual level. Charles made Snape and I swear not to tell anything we learned that day and bound the memory in our minds. As your Godfather, I can speak with you about this."

"Many bureaucrats in the ministry hate magical creatures and hybrids so it would cause you no end of trouble if the ministry, media or Dumbledore found out. Despite what he says and what he did for Moony, Charles didn't trust him with this. As far as he knows, the Potters are as pure as snow."

"All the old families have some creature blood in them. The older the family, the more varied the creatures. It used to be a great source of magical strength to wizarding families. One of the earliest Potters bonded with a Dragon. There's also Gargoyle blood from way back. That's why the Potter's magic was so strong at defending the home."

"Jamsie was always the best in transfiguration and defence. He was always the top of the class in Gryffindor and he got the highest defence NEWT in the school. He used to say that defence, warding and protective magic was in his blood. The Potter family was well known for their spell creation particularly when it came to defensive magic and wards. Your grandfather Charles was responsible for maintaining many of the wards still around public places like Hogsmeade, Diagon Ally and Nocturne Ally."

"Lily was a natural in potions and charms and completely uncanny in herbology. I swear in herbology she'd talk to her plants and they'd behave for her while the rest of us were fighting with our devil's snare, hers was practically preening and purring at her like a cat! Slughorn and Flitwick both adored her. Before she did her NEWTS, they both talked to her about apprenticing with them."

"Creature blood never used to be a shameful secret but now with so many creatures' having been wiped out and the restrictions, and bigotry most families hide their heritage. It's ironic really but the one's that have the most secrets to hide are often the one's that condemn creatures the loudest."

"Do the Dumbledores have any creature heritage?" Harry asked curiously

Sirius snorted, "He certainly claims not to; but Lily always thought he looked like a muggle garden gnome! Or maybe he's a meddlesome faun hopping around on his little goat hooves as he interferes with everything around him."

* * *

Sirius shifted and pulled a number of shrunken packages out of his pocket.

"OK, now that all the serious stuff is out of the way I bring gifts! Actually most of this doesn't count as a gift because it comes from the Potter vault anyway. You'll be able to access it after you turn seventeen. The goblins let me in because as your godfather, I'm legally still your guardian, and goblins don't care about your criminal record. On your seventeenth birthday or shortly after, you need to go to Gringotts and claim your family vaults and the Potter family ring."

He passed Harry a small jewellery box which when open had a pair of small Gryffindor earrings in it. "Firstly, from Lily, one of those is actually a trunk that she made and charmed in her fifth year. She told us that her sister had been obnoxious the summer before and had ruined lots of her books and school things. She made this so she could safely and securely have her stuff with her at home or Hogwarts. She still kept her old trunk and we didn't figure it out until she told us after Hogwarts."

"Before you were born, James added some more wards so that you could use it at Hogwarts. It's got Blood and Magical Signature Recognition so that only you can enlarge it or open it. You can wear it as either an earring or a pin, if you do somehow lose it or it's taken from you, it's blood bound to you so you can call it back. It's got a Muggle Repelling ward, Notice Me Not ward. And two special Potter wards. The first is Innate Magical Concealment ward so that no scan will identify it as a magical object and the second is a magical containment ward any magic inside cannot be tracked my the ministry and tracking or monitoring charms on a person or object will stop working in there."

"I haven't been inside but there are three magically enlarged sections and one that looks like a regular internal of a trunk but is linked to the other three. If you think about needing anything that is in any of the sections, it will appear in the first. I know one of the enlarged sections is a library and study area that she used to use during the summer. Your mother's work journals describing how she made it and charmed it are inside the first section."

Sirius passed over a pair of glasses with a stylish metal rim and a thick black tome. "Secondly, from Jamesie there's two things, First these are his glasses. When James came of age, his eyesight become perfect. Instead of just tossing these out, Charles had them charmed to act like Alastair's eye or Dumbledore's glasses. They can see a magical person's aura and the magic in anything that is enchanted or charmed. It doesn't have the x-ray option though because Lils wouldn't let him. Your eyesight should also fix itself on your seventeenth birthday."

"Secondly, and most importantly, this is the Potter Family Grimoire. Never let anyone else open it and be careful about revealing anything in there. Never let Dumbledore know you have it and keep it in the trunk. Being the Potter Family Grimoire it's naturally very well warded. You need to start reading this. It has much of the information about your family that you ought to have been told before you ever heard about Hogwarts. Dumbledore failed you and the Potter family terribly when he let you turn up the Hogwarts so uninformed. Charles would be rolling in his grave. So many of the old family alliances have been weakened or destroyed because you weren't aware of them."

"Thirdly, from me, I know you've been working on finding your animagus form for the last year." Sirius held a small vial of pale pearlescent blue potion. With a grin he said "This is the secret of the marauders rapid success. It will put you to sleep for at least 4 yours and you have a vision or dream that reflects your inner character. Your form will come to you and you will enter into it's mind almost like possessing it. You need to concentrate on how the animal's mind works, how every bone, muscle and movement feels. When you wake up, you can use those memories to begin transforming parts of you into the actual animal. This potion will cut up to two years off the process.

-

Finally, Sirius handed over an envelope full of documents. "When I went to your vaults, I checked up on the Potter account Manager, His names Flintfist and he's doing a good job of keeping the estate in order for you. There have been a number of withdrawals from your trust account that don't look right but if you already know about them and have decided to do nothing for the time being that's OK, The Goblins are keeping records of exactly who is accessing that account and like you said, in the scheme of things it's certainly not a significant amount."

"I looked through the particulars of all properties included in the Potter estate looking for a possible safe house. There are a number of well warded residences in Scotland, Iceland, France, Greece and Canada. I've included details about the ones with the strongest wards in that pack there are permanent, untracable portkeys for each. The main Potter residence is in Wales called Potter Hall. It's where your grandparents lived and quite close to Godrics Hollow. The wards there are very strong but then again, it's also a very well known location"

"I think you'll need a safe house overseas. The properties in Britain can hide you but you'll be at risk any time you leave the wards. If you're going to have a life, you need to be somewhere that no one will recognise you. There are many areas around the world that wizards avoid. This is often because the local 'muggle' population is magical in their own way and wizards can't handle the thought that they're not the only ones able to do magic. California and some areas in the USA are like that. British wizards also tend to avoid countries with more liberal creature laws like Asia and South America. In most of Asia, magical beings have the same rights as Wizards."

"I've got two permanent, untracable portkeys here to safe places I used after I escaped from Hogwarts. They were very obscure locations that no one associates with the black family. I think they'll be safer to use than something from the Potter estate. I've discreetly transferred title over to Bran Evans and it looks like they were both owned by his parents before that."

"The first is to Black Island in Greece near the city of Argos. It's hidden with a Fidelius charm, Unplottable, and has a Wizard repelling ward that works unless your keyed in. The island has some forest and has beautiful beaches. There are three muggle villages and some muggle tourists visit there."

"The second is to a farm in America outside of St. Louis. Again, it's under Fidelius charm, Unplottable and magical concealment wards. There are a few hectares of land with woods. It's surrounded by more woods in a restricted National Park. It's very isolated, but St. Louis isn't far away. Wizards avoid St. Louis like the plague. They have many strong muggle witches, muggles are aware of Vampires and Lycans and both are legal citizens of the country. If you stay there long, you'll eventually have to get approval of the Master of the City to remain. When I was there, her name was Nikolaos. She looked like a young girl, but she was as scary as hell."

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Updated: 27 September 2008

* * *

I'm in need of Beta assistance to help to help me keep my tenses straight. Also need help with typo's, commas and semi-colons. I've got about 15k words written so far. Please send msg by my Author's page if you can help.


	5. The Money and the Wand

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** BlackCrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

* * *

**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter Five - The Money And The Wand **

* * *

**Sunday 3rd May 1998 - Gringotts**

As soon as Harry left Hogwarts, his first stop was Gringotts. The only Goblin that treated him remotely civilly was the Potter family account manager Flintfist. Fortunately, before his fifth year, he'd made arrangements to be able to access the contents of his vaults from either a Gringotts Bag or a Gringotts branch overseas. He'd also removed enough gold, galleons and different muggle currencies to be able to survive comfortably for a long time. He'd discreetly deposited significant sums to several muggle banks accounts in his new name.

Speaking with Flintfist, Harry made arrangements to increase the security on his vault. This was to ensure that no-one would be able to access the Vaults without being a direct member of Harry's family. He didn't trust the ministry and even Dumbledore's and Mrs. Weasley's actions had proven that trust could be misplaced.

He updated his will making generous provisions for many of his friends and former friends, and arranged for it to be read after his reported death. He left a large number of pensieve memories and timed letters to his godson Teddy. He ensured that any claims on the Potter estate were strictly verified with blood and magic and that the main Potter vaults could only be accessed by him.

He wouldn't be surprised if supposed love children started coming out of the woodwork once it was known that he was gone.

Finally before leaving Flintlock, he'd requested the access information for locations of the Potter and Black family homes. Some locations could only be accessed by portkey and some could be accessed by apparition co-ordinates.

Having finished his business with his account manager, Harry went down to the family vault again and put any books about his family history, journals, books on creatures, warding and anything else of interest and placed them into his mother's trunk.

The trunk his mother had made was amazing. He wore it as a little ruby Gryffindor pin. He hadn't used it in the last year because he hadn't dared to use it in front of his two minders. There were three enlarged spaces. The first was his mum's study and library. It would keep expanding, adding more shelves as he added books. She'd layered the shelves with archival and data search spells so she could quickly find what she needed. All of her work journals and quills and knickknacks from when she was younger were there too. The second space was like a tiny studio flat. There was a large bed that folded away into the wall and became a sofa, a bathroom with an awesome spa bath and a tiny kitchenette. The studio was decorated in blue and whitewash and big windows overlooked a sunny bay. This was the closest he'd ever been to a beach - discounting the cave with Dumbledore. The third space was Harry's favorite. It was a glass house or conservatory. The charm work involved had astounded Harry; it was much more complicated that the Great Hall or any of the greenhouses at Hogwarts. Everything in there had thrived for last 17 years. There was real sunlight and rain and the seasons changed like in nature. He loved being in here, sitting near the plants and drawing energy from the atmosphere of the place. It calmed him like nothing else and he could almost feel his mother there. After skimming through the work journal the Lily had written about the trunk, He'd discovered that he could pass between spaces by placing a hand on the wall and thinking wither 'beach', 'garden' or 'study'.

Before leaving Gringotts, Harry cast a glamour over himself and headed out. The street was buzzing and celebrating. For the last year, Diagon Alley had been a ghost town; now, the street was packed with well-wishers and people celebrating. The only way to get through his lot, Harry decided, was to put on a disgustingly cheerful face and blend in. It was actually one of the hardest things he'd done in a while, walking around with a broad smile while inside he felt utterly used up and empty.

As he passed Ollivander's wand shop, he was shocked to see that the shop was no longer boarded up and there was an open sign on the door. Feeling wistful, he opened the door and went in. Everything was exactly as he remembered from his first trip into Diagon Alley, right down to the smell off sawdust and wand polish. He was startled out of his memories by the old voice of Ollivander himself.

"Good afternoon, Harry Potter," said a soft voice, startling him. "I rather thought I'd be seeing you here soon. It's good to see you here again."

"It's good to see you here too, Sir." He replied with a smile "Have you been well?"

"Ah yes I've been well, but you wouldn't believe the amount of work I need to catch up on. Step into the back Mr Potter, I've made something for you. Some mutual friends of ours want you to get this before your next birthday"

Harry's forehead was furrowed as he tried to think of a mutual friend. He knew he'd been at least acquaintances with Dumbledore but didn't think that Dumbledore would want to arrange anything other than his martyrdom. Snape, Sirius, Lupin, the people who'd known the most about him, were all gone, Neville, George, Dean, Luna maybe, McGonagall or Flitwick maybe.

"One of the first, one of the last and one you haven't thought of." Ollivander answered with a smirk, despite the fact that Harry hadn't said any of that out loud.

Harry blinked and pulled his Occlumency shields up tight. "Are these mutual friends of ours all well," Harry asked cautiously.

"Oh yes, very well indeed, Mr Potter. Two have just been promoted, quite the honor you know and one's enjoying his first vacation in 17 years, Of course the weather's irritating him you know, and the sunshine and the quiet, etcetera, etcetera, ad nauseum" Ollivander answered with a chuckle.

Harry shut his eyes and felt like the bottom was going to drop out of his world. He sat down shakily on an empty chair and leaned forward, sure he was going to either faint of cry. The thought that after everything that had happened his mentor could have made it. His death in the shrieking shack had shattered him. Of all the people he'd last over the last few years, losing Severus had been the hardest. Thinking about it, he supposed that dhampir heritage had been enough, or he could have used a gollum once he knew Voldemort knew about the wand. Come to think of it, he wasn't so surprised that Snape had activated his escape plan that way; He was still going to kick his arse next time he saw him. He laughed slightly hysterically. "Where is he please?" he struggled out.

"He's somewhere in Asia right now collecting ingredients. And I've got him looking out for possible wand cores for me. He'll be out of touch for a few months. If you send anything along to me, I'll see he gets it. And keep his necklace close, He'll find you."

"Just tell him next time he sees me to remember his shielding and evasion techniques." Harry said pinching the bridge of his nose. So many were still dead but all of a sudden he felt less empty. "Thank-you Mr. Ollivander, you've given me the best news I could dream of."

"So of the others, I would guess the Headmistress?" Harry asked with a question.

Ollivander smiled and nodded.

"That means so much to me. She always tried to be there for me."

Changing the subject, Ollivander indicated for Harry to come over to his work bench. On one end were a number of pieces of wood cut and roughly shaped. "I know it's been repaired, but the wand you carry no longer suits who you are. You're free of that destiny now. My godson, Severus, asked me to make you a custom wand. These are the bases that I think may suit you. Pass your hand above them and see if any feel right." Ollivander instructed.

Harry passed his hand slowly above him. He was surprised when each bought up different emotions in him. The birch felt like a breath of fresh air; the willow made him feel dreamy; the elder wood though felt right. It felt like death and rebirth, new life and hope. He passed the wood to Ollivander who raised his eyebrow.

"Death and rebirth are all a part of the cycle of life, it suits you. Now for wand cores, most regular cores won't do at all, they're not flexible enough. You're much too unique and need something that can grow and change with you. These are the most likely ones based on what Severus has told me." he indicated to the jars and boxes on the other end of the work bench.

Once again, Harry passed a hand over the collection. He found a black scale and a green scale that felt suitable. He moved them both aside, trying to feel which was the best. "I'm having trouble deciding between these two, I don't want to put either back," Harry said apologetically.

"Hmm, it's highly unusual, but we can use both. The black scale is rumored to be from an ancient Black Dragon. It was given to my family when we started crafting wands but no-one ever felt to was the right time to use it. The green scale was given to my family a thousand years ago by Salazar Slytherin himself. It's from a very young basilisk." Ollivander looked at the collection reverently. "This will be quite some wand Mr Potter."

Ollivander gathered up the wood and two scales and bustled over to a spare work bench. He emptied the two scales onto a small marble tray and began a lilting chant in a language Harry didn't recognized as his hands moved skillfully over the elder wood. Harry felt truly honored to be watching the old man at work.

After a while, Ollivander was finished. With a flourish and a bow, he presented to wand to Harry.

Harry timidly reached out to take the wand. It was thinner and longer than his last wand; it was a dark color with dark green veins over the handle. As he took hold of, he felt his heart stop, before restarting with a thump. A gentle breeze grew up around him and he could smell the faint scent of rain and new growth and earth. In awe, he cradled the wand staring at it.

Finally, he looked up at Ollivander with a tear in his eye and opened his mouth before closing it again. He was too overwhelmed.

Ollivander just nodded wide-eyed and whispered, "Just as another elder wand you own invariably brings death, this shall bring forth life and shall be just as undefeatable. Use it well."

"When will you be ready?" Ollivander asked cryptically while waiting for Harry to come back to earth.

Harry was confused and he opened his mouth and then closed it. Realization struck him, "this afternoon, I've just got a few more stops I want to make before starting my vacation."

"Be seen wandering around Diagon Alley for a bit and then go check into Tom's for the night. Tell him you're tired and ask him to send up some tea later; leave from there without being seen." Ollivander advised.

"Who was the third, I can't think of anyone?" Harry queried.

"He's a good man, and I'm not telling any more. Check the special edition tonight," Ollivander teased.

"You won't have to leave the wizarding world forever if you don't want to. After you've gained control and lived a bit, it'll be easy enough to come back as someone else. Keep in mind, not all of the children from the ministry experiment were killed," said Ollivander with a smugly.

"But that was five, six hundred years ago!!" Harry choked.

Ollivander continued smirking at him not saying anything watching Harry's mouth open and shut like a goldfish.

His mind was mostly working again by the time he finally arrived at Madam Malkins to purchase some formal robes. He discreetly removed the glamour before going in. As soon as he was recognized, he was mobbed by Madam Malkin and her assistants and other customers that were there to gossip and celebrate. He finally managed to order several sets of robes; his favorite was a dark crimson robe with black trim and a winter cape that was black with a matching crimson trim. Taking a generous sum out of his Gringotts bag, he asked Madam Malkin to have his order ready for him within the hour. Then he braced himself and stepped outside the door.

He was nearly knocked off his feet by the blast of well-wishers shouting congratulations and all wanting to touch him. He decided to give them one final show and put on his most charming smile before pushing his way through the crowed shaking hands and saying cheerful hello. He managed to make his way to the Leathermans Shop and left the crowed outside. He breathed a sigh of relief as he made his way into the silent shop. He wanted to get some pairs of the durable Dragonhide boots. He finally choose a black Hungarian Horntail pair that went halfway up his shin and a dark brown pair.

* * *

Updated: 30 September 2008

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I'm in need of Beta assistance to help to help me keep my tenses straight. Also need help with typo's, commas, semi-colons. I've got about 36k words written so far. Please send msg by my Author's page if you can help.


	6. Potter Hall

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** BlackCrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

* * *

**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter 6 - Potter Hall **

* * *

**Sunday 3rd May 1998 - Potter Hall**

With his business in Diagon Alley finally finished, Harry headed to several of the Potter and Black residences that had libraries. He wanted to collect as much as he could so that he wouldn't need to return in the foreseeable future. He hadn't had time to visit Nockturn Alley today but still wanted to get his hands on some of the more obscure and questionable books that his own family hadn't owned. The Black family was well known for their interest in many 'obscure' branches of magic. In each place he visited, he also ensured the wards were sound and sealed the property.

He finally reached Potter Hall, the main Potter residence. He had visited here once before with Sirius so he knew his way around a little. He went to the library and again collected many of the books of interest that he hadn't already found. He then called Pappy the head elf to speak with.

Pappy appeared with a crack, "Master Harry, you have returned to us!" He said with a tear in his eye. "All your house-elves want me to tell you that we are very grateful that Master James and Mistress Lily have been avenged. We hope that you can come home now and rest so we can take care of you." Pappy looked at Harry with his head cocked, "Master Harry is not staying is he?"

Harry could tell that the perceptive old elf was crestfallen at that. "I'm going to stay here tonight, but it won't be safe for me to stay publicly in England." He said. "The ministry won't leave me alone and I don't trust them or the wizards to let me live in peace. I will be leaving the country."

"I will need your help though. How many Potter family house-elfs are there?"

"There are twelve now. Two are too old to work and two are too young.

"I need a house to visit my account manager Flintfist in Gringotts every month to collect any communications from him. Is it possible for a house-elf to find a wizard overseas?" Harry asked.

"If they are bound, it is no problem. Distance makes no difference to a house-elf."

"Then I need an elf to deliver them and copies of the Daily Prophet to me wherever I may be. Also, have one collect the daily prophet when it's released this evening. How long have you been with the Potters?" Harry queried.

"I have been head-elf hear since your grandfather Master Charles was a little wizard. And I had served 6 Master Potters before him."

Harry nodded, "I hope you can help me then, since I saw you last, I found out the Dumbledore gave me the Force de Sang potion when I was 12. He didn't feel that I was going to be a strong enough wizard to fight Voldemort. The potion will make any creature blood I may have active and I don't know enough about the Potter family." Harry explained with a sigh.

"Bad Wizard had no right to do that to young Master Harry. If Master Charles were alive, He would be so angry with Bad Wizard for hurting his family. Bad Wizard would not have been happy. Pappy knows where some books are that will help you."

Harry had long thought that angry house elves were scary.

Pappy showed Harry to a secret entrance hidden in the library and instructed Harry to place a drop of blood on a particular brick. Harry felt the magic lap over him as it tested him. Then the section of the wall folded away like the entry to Diagon Alley. He entered a comfortable looking study with many bookshelves and glass cabinets holding strange artifacts and instruments around the outside of the room. There was a large solid oak desk in the centre of the room.

What really caught his attention though was an enormous tapestry that illustrated his family tree. The border had twisting dark green vines entwined with heraldic symbols and magical and mythical creatures on a deep crimson background. Names were embroidered in gold and silver thread with the primary line of descent in gold. Looking carefully over the last hundred years or so, all of the related lines had terminated without issue - He was the last.

Pappy instructed, "As the new Master, you will need to bring it up to date by adding a drop of blood over your name there."

Harry did as instructed and felt a connection grow in his mind. His name now showed a new crest consisting of a black dragon in the top left hand corner, a sword with ruby hilt diagonally across the centre and an Elder tree in the bottom right corner.

Now that it recognizes you, you will be able to find out about anyone who appears on the family tapestry. Find the name and focus on it and think about the information you need.

-

Harry started working his way through the names on the tapestry. For each name embroidered in gold, he could retrieve a detailed biography of their lives. There was less information from the names embroidered in silver - mostly information about their family line and magical/creature heritage if they had married into the family and basic information of their achievements. Apparently the tapestry had been a gift from a talented enchantress who was the elder sister of the first name on the tapestry - Cyraien over 3000 years ago.

Cyraien was the mortal form of an ancient Black Dragon that had fallen in love and bonded with a daughter of the Potter clan - a clan of craftsmen and sea traders from the south coast of what is now Wales. Their son Cyraius was the first Potter to be born with magical ability. Cyraius became a strong clan chief respected for his wisdom and fairness. Cyraien remained in contact with his descendants for many centuries, acting as a mentor and teaching the ways of magic, before disappearing shortly before the Romans appeared. Many of Cyraius descendants were air or fire elementals and magic users. They developed many runic based protections that they used on their homes and vessels and were known as untouchable at home and at sea.

Despite having such an extensive and auspicious magical history, they preferred to keep that knowledge to themselves. Potters were strong men; they rarely took part in war for political or ideological motivations but who protected their kin with everything they had. The information and stories that he could now access had a powerful effect on Harry who had always had his heritage withheld from him. The fact that he was the last Potter, after a history of 3000 years caused him no little anguish.

The Potters had intermarried with many magical beings and hybrids. There were many different potential abilities that he might gain. He took careful note of the creatures as he found them so he could research them later - Dragon, Elemental, Sidhe, Lamia, Veela, Selkie. There was also a family curse. One Potter patriarch was cursed and turned into a Gargoyle. The original curse was to petrify him and turn him to stone. Somehow, it had mutated and he became the first magical Gargoyle. The Gargoyle blood remained in his descendants' blood increasing their protectiveness on kin and on occasion came out in later generations as an animagus form.

Looking at the names closer to him, he focused his attention on his Mother's name.

Lily Potter ne Evans (30 Jan 1960 - 31 Oct 1981) m James Potter 8 Jun 1978

Gifts: Gifted in Charms and Potions, Earth Elemental.

Heritage: Recognised as Muggleborn but heritage includes distant squib lines Llewellyn and Evans and descendant of unbound Dryad.

-

Harry had been studying the tapestry and taking notes for a few hours when Pappy returned with his tea and a newspaper. Curious to see what Ollivander and associates had done, he sat down at the desk to read

Daily Prophet:

**'Man Who Lived Twice' Dies!!**

Only a day after defeating the terrible 'He Who Is Now Gone' at the Battle of Hogwarts, the body of our hero was found in a room at the Leaky Cauldron.

Mr. Potter was identified by his former Head of House Headmistress Minerva McGonagall, and by the current acting Minister of Magic, Mr. Kingsley Shacklebolt, a former auror and close friend of our hero, Mr. Potter who both determined that nothing could be done for Mr. Potter.

Minister Shacklebolt and Headmistress McGonagall made a tear-filled announcement that:

_'There was no evidence of violence or foul play involved in Mr. Potter's death. It is believed that Mr. Potter's death was a delayed reaction to the killing curse which struck him the previous day.'_

_'Mr. Potter's funeral will be held at Hogwarts in three days time. He will be buried at Hogwarts, a place he called home, and fought to protect. Mr. Potter's body will be removed to Hogwarts where it will remain in state until his funeral. All who wish to come and pay their respects will be welcome.'_

Tom of the Leaky was the last person known to speak with our hero:

_'He looked exhausted when he came in this afternoon. He said he hadn't slept in nearly a week and just needed a rest. He asked for a room for the night and some tea bought up later._

_When I bought Mr. Potter's tea to his room, there was no answer. When I entered the room, he was lying on the bed looking so peaceful but I could tell he'd passed on. I called when I came downstairs to call for help, two of his associates and fellow heroes of the war, Headmistress McGonagall and Minister Shacklebolt, were there. They quickly took charge of the situation._

_I remember the first time Mr. Potter entered Diagon Alley when he was only eleven. It seems like it were only yesterday. It's so unfair and our world is worse off for this terrible tragedy.'_

Many people reported seeing our hero, Mr. Potter out in Diagon Alley earlier smiling and greeting everyone

Many eye-witness accounts followed of his excursion that day and of his actions at the Battle of Hogwarts.

-

Harry's eyes widened in shock, "Kingsley!? But I thought I heard him with Dumbledore I, He" Harry sat there for a few minutes stunned. He'd really thought that Kingsley had agreed with Dumbledore's plans for him. To find out that Kingsley had also been plotting with Severus, Ollivander and the headmistress to protect him and give him a chance to live blew his mind.

-

Not wanting to face the nightmares that would come if he tried to sleep; Harry ended up studying the tapestry all night. Finally feeling the need to leave, he summoned Pappy to the study. "I'm going to leave the country for a while. When the changes have settled down and I'm sure I'm safe, I want to call a house-elf that is willing to go with me. I may not always be safe to be around, particularly around my birthdays. But I need some of my family around me and to help me."

"Pappy wants to help, but he is too old to do much work. Will you take two elves with you? Tinnie and Rosie are young and strong pair. They are very clever and happy to work. They used to help Master James and Mistress Lily in their small cottage. They would be good to help you, Tinnie works in the fields here now and he is very good with animals and plants and he can also make potions from his plants. Rosie can cook and clean and has worked in the library here."

The old elf Pappy looked at Harry very seriously, "Pappy doesn't believe that a Master Potter will ever hurt his family or elves but you can be sure that if they need to, they can pop back here at any time to be safe." he said.

Finally, Harry Instructed Pappy to inform his elves that Potter Hall was closed to everyone not of Potter blood. He was finally ready to leave England. He said farewell to Pappy and then activated the escape port-key that Sirius had given him so long ago.

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Updated: 6 October 2008

* * *

I'm in need of Beta assistance to help to help me keep my tenses straight. Also need help with typo's, commas, semi-colons. I've got about 15k words written so far. Please send msg by my Author's page if you can help.


	7. Free at Last

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** BlackCrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

* * *

**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter 7 - Free At Last **

* * *

**May 1998 - St. Louis - Safe house **

Harry found himself on the ground where the port- key had left him, muttering about accursed magical transport. The port-Key had been worse than any other he'd used. He guessed it was because of the distance involved. It was just after dawn and the morning was crisp and clear and the air was still.

He looked around himself thinking that the house looked more a rambling farmhouse from Britain than what he would expect to find in America. He recognised many of the plants in the overgrown garden from Herbology and Potions, there was Aconite, Hellebore, Monkshood, Asphodel and Belladonna that he recognised as poisonous as well as many other more innocuous plants.

The house was a two story stone farmhouse made up of several rambling, interconnected buildings. It had a steep slate roof and many chimneys. There were many small windows and a small portico at the entrance. He walked towards the entry and opened the door. Magic brushed over his skin as the wards tested and recognised him. He had a feeling of welcoming and home from the wards.

The door opened onto a large front room, he could see several doorways leading off it and a long crooked hallway heading to the back of the house. He wandered around, poking his head in each of the rooms. Off to the left of the front room was a large study that was quite bare except for a large desk and plain chair. To the right was what looked to be a sitting room but was completely bare. What he assumed was the dining room was completely bare. In the kitchen he found that although there was ample food stocked in the magical freezer, there was very little in the way of cooking utensils and equipment. There was a small stock of candles. Behind the kitchen was a work area with a door that led out into a kitchen garden. Down the hallway, stairs led up to the second level and down to a basement. The living area on the ground floor was all very sparsely furnished. The walls were whitewashed with no pictures. The floor was bare timber.

It was all very plain and not something he'd expect from the Black family. He would have to go shopping soon to see about furnishing it. Still he was actually looking forward to selecting stuff for the house.

Harry found several more rooms down in the basement. He'd used a wandless Lumos spell to look around. He'd found that for simple spells wandless magic was easier and less destructive than trying to force his wand to work. One room was still set up as a potions workroom with workbenches, fire-pits, sinks and some old cauldrons and utensils. The cupboard for ingredients still had some in jars but many of the ingredients looked too old. There was a small furnished bedroom with bathroom set up next to the potions workroom. There were several other storage rooms down here as well.

In the centre of the basement, he found the room he'd been looking for. He needed to check the wards and see if he could include some of the Potter wards. He used the portkey that Sirius had made as a key to access the room. The room itself was bare except for a large marble pedestal that came up to his waist. On the pedestal were a number of carved stones. Each stone represented a change to the wards that had been made in the past. The wards here were surprisingly strong, the Unplottable ward was very well done as were the Muggle Repelling wards set around the outside of the property. There were wards that preserved the condition of the house, protected it from fire and prevented vermin entering.

Satisfied with their condition Harry left the basement. He intended to study them later and add a magical containment ward so that the strong magic involved in warding the area wouldn't be noticed by anyone who was magically sensitive.

Heading up to the top floor he found several unfurnished bedrooms, a bathroom and storage spaces. The largest bedroom was over the front of the house and looked out over the front garden and across the woods that surrounded the house. There were no neighbours for miles, a thought that set Harry at ease. The bedroom also had a dressing room, sitting room and a bathroom attached. Harry thought he'd use this room once it was furnished.

Harry sat down at the large desk in the study so he could work on a list of what he needed to do and buy. He really needed to familiarise himself with American muggle culture, especially their laws about magic and creatures. He needed some transport that could blend in. He needed to find out where to shop for furniture and home wares then he needed to go furniture shopping. He also desperately needed to go clothes shopping as

Looking over the list, he decided to stay in a hotel in town so he could familiarise himself with a new town and country and until he could figure out where to buy everything. He figured that he deserved a short holiday before getting into the books he'd bought.

He also wanted to update the kitchen and bathrooms. Thinking about, he decided to ask Pappy what the magical world did when they wanted new furniture or renovations done. He didn't want to let local tradesmen into his safe house and have to explain the oddities around the place or have to use magic on them to make them forget.

It was getting late and time-lag was catching up with him. Not hungry at all, he decided to use the bedroom downstairs as it was the only one furnished. Lighting a candle he cleared the dust and cleaned the bed, then, remembering the beachhouse in the trunk, he decided to use that for the night. He enlarged his trunk had a long scalding shower and fell into the bed. He slept a very restless and disturbed sleep that night.

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Updated: 6 October 2008

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I'm in need of Beta assistance to help to help me keep my tenses straight. Also need help with typo's, commas, semi-colons. I've got about 15k words written so far. Please send msg by my Author's page if you can help.


	8. Shopping Therapy

**Title:** A Gargoyle in St Louis  
**Author:** BlackCrow  
**Rating:** T/PG-13  
**Warnings:** Violence, Insanity  
**Summary:** After Voldemort is defeated, Harry must flee for his life before he comes into an unknown creature inheritance. His sanity is already fragile when he arrives in St. Louis will he survive the changes intact. Crossover with ABtVH. Creatures, Vampires, D/s, Gray!Harry  
**Disclaimer:** Not Mine. The author receives no financial gain from its production or distribution.

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**A Gargoyle in St Louis**  
** Chapter Eight - Shopping Therapy **

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**May 1998 - St. Louis **

Early the next day, Harry found and checked into a rather nice hotel as 'Bran Evans'. His first task was to eradicate his old 'look', which he'd been desperate to do for years. He wanted to get rid of everything that was characteristically 'Harry Potter' - his baggy, oversized clothing, his scar, his hair, his ugly glasses and his vivid green eyes. He planned to finally buy clothes that suited him and made him feel good. His scar had begun fading and hopefully it would eventually fade so that it wasn't noticeable - for now, he applied a glamour to it. Before the soul-link had been destroyed, no amount of magic would conceal it; now it was just a blemish. His hair had grown out a lot in the last year and the extra weight had given him more control of it. He wasn't going to cut it as he would be more at risk of being recognised as 'Harry Potter' with short hair. He thought he might get it dyed or streaked. As he no longer needed to wear glasses or keep up the pretence that he did, he transfigured his father's glasses into sunglasses as they were still useful. Bran couldn't bring himself to change anything about his eyes - the link with his Mother was too precious.

He asked at reception for some recommendations on places to go shopping and then headed out by taxi. The shopping centre was a huge collection of department stores, boutiques and everything else; his first stop was to get his hair changed.

His hairdresser was a young man called Gregory with blonde tips and multiple face piercings. Bran ended up deciding to get his hair trimmed and highlights of blonde and silver put through. Gregory was a serious flirt and Bran suspected he just enjoyed making him blush with his suggestive comments. They talked a lot about St Louis and what to do around town for fun. It seemed that many of the more popular clubs were run by vampires.

A young man with seriously long auburn hair and violet eyes came in wearing black leather pants and a mesh shirt. He had dark shadows under his eyes, and looked like he had the weight of the world on his back. Gregory stopped what he was doing with Bran's hair and beckoned the man over.

"Hey Nate, What's up, you look like shit."

"It's just been a bad week Gregory. I thought I'd come in and see how you guys are going, spend the day around here and get some retail therapy." The violet eyed man said trying to give a smile.

"How's work going Nate?"

"Work's great still." He replied elusively.

"Take a seat next to Bran here and help me out. Bran's new in town and I'm in the process of corrupting, I mean, introducing him to the highlights of our town. Of course Nate here's a highlight all by himself." He said with a snigger. "Give me your hands Nate and I'll give you a manicure to cheer you up while we wait on the colour."

Nate somehow slinked to the chair Gregory had indicated and folded himself into it and allowed Gregory to take his hands to work on.

"How long have you been in town?" Nathaniel asked.

"Only since yesterday"

"You're from England? Are you just here for a holiday or are you here longer?"

"I'm just here for a few weeks now but I'm looking at moving out permanently later in the year."

The three talked for a while about nightclubs to go to, things to do around town and possible jobs. Bran felt surprisingly comfortable about joking around with these two men.

"What else are you doing up to today?"

"Shopping therapy!" He chuckled. "I need an entire new wardrobe. What I'm wearing is the only decent thing that I have. And I'm scouting the area." Bran thought about it. "You want to come with? You look good and I could use all the help I can get." Bran asked hopefully.

They both raised an eyebrow and he blushed when he realised what he'd said. "What I mean to say is that you appear to be a man of style and taste. And I'm sure you could impart your valuable style wisdom while I attempt to negotiate my way through the dastardly construct that is 'The American Shopping Mall'," he said in his toffiest accent.

They all laughed.

"An invitation to help you spend money? Sounds good," Nate snickered.

Nathaniel arranged to meet Gregory for lunch at two and then headed off with Bran.

"So what are you looking for?"

"Everything, I need some everyday stuff, some winter stuff, club stuff and some conservative stuff and everything in between."

He ended up getting several winter jackets, fleeces, jeans, trousers, t-shirts, button-ups, boots, sneakers and shoes before he begged Nathaniel to slow down. In the beginning, he'd found it a novel experience. He'd loved the different textures and types of fabric - he'd fallen in love with the cool shimmery feel of silk and with the warm fuzzy feel of fleece. After a few hours of Nathaniel's blistering pace around the mall, however, it had become serious hard work. Still, he was glad for the help; he wouldn't have known where to start. Finally he convinced Nathaniel to stop for lunch so he could take a rest.

He'd really enjoyed the morning; Nate was a lot of fun - even if he did enjoy shocking him and making him blush. When he'd found out that Nathaniel worked as a stripper in a Vampire owned club, he'd blushed and stammered before asking if he enjoyed and If It pays well. He could tell that Nate loved dancing and playing to the crowd. He talked a lot about his friends and the people he worked with. He wouldn't talk about what was bothering him earlier other than saying 'Girl trouble'. Of course they'd both snickered when later he asked Bran why he wanted to leave England. He'd just said simply "Girl trouble," before adding, " and girl's mother trouble and girl's five brother's trouble... and a bit of other trouble."

"What, you knocked up your girl?"

"Merlin no, I wouldn't touch her. She's an obsessed, gold-digging, stalker, psychopath girl and her family expects us to get married. I barely managed to escape with my life!" Bran replied jokingly with a shudder.

Slinging a free hand around Bran's shoulders, he asked "Poor, poor Bran, so was it the obsessed, gold-digging, stalker, psychopath part or the girl part that made you run?"

Bran blushed, "Um, maybe both. But if I'd stayed, I would have been trapped anyway."

"What made you decide to come here and not just leave town?"

"My godfather left me an old place outside of St. Louis, I need something to do so I thought I'd check it out and see if I could do it up and stuff."

They caught up with Gregory for lunch and had a good time chatting about stuff. Bran was astonished at how much food the two could put away.

"I'm going to take Bran here over to the district and check out some of my favourite stores"

Gregory's eyes sparkled in mischievous delight and he leered at Bran. "Oh, I want to see that too!" he exclaimed, "I'm finished for the day, I'll drive! I'll see if Stephen wants to come too - he should be awake by now."

Gregory called his brother and arranged to meet him there.

They loaded the huge collection of shopping bags into Gregory's car and headed down to a shopping street near the river.

"Welcome to the blood district; home to blood suckers, the furry and the freaks, Open all night long." Said Gregory with a grin

Bran stared as they passed by nightclubs and music venues that had their neon lights on - Danse Macabre, The Laughing Corpse, and The Circus of the Damned.

-

They met up with Stephen and Bran looked at him oddly, trying to figure what was familiar about him. He was obviously Gregory's identical twin but he felt more familiar. It was just a feeling about his aura or energy. Both Nate and Gregory had similar but different energies surrounding them, warm and spicy.

Caught staring, Bran blushed, "Sorry, you just really remind me of someone I was trying to figure it out. A close friend of mine, he was kind of um wild."

Nathaniel, Gregory and Stephen all shared glances and a silent conversation. Finally Gregory shrugged "We all get kind of wild actually" he said cautiously.

Bran cocked his head a concentrated, "Remus was a wolf, a close friend of my father's. Um, are you all"

"I am. These two are kitty flavored." Stephen said

"Wereleopards," said Nate helpfully after seeing the bewildered expression on Bran's face.

"Oh," Bran said with a frown, "I didn't know there were other types of weres."

"Wolves are the most common then Rats and Hyenas. There are also Leopards, Tigers, Lions, Bears, and assorted others. There are Swans and Snakes but they're more of a magical curse than a virus." Nathaniel added.

"How bizarre. My school only ever mentioned Werewolves. Oh well, Learn something new everyday, if your not careful." He shrugged. Thinking about Teddy he asked, "Is it accepted socially here?

"Technically, it's illegal to discriminate against or to hunt a lycanthrope, but in practice, it's still hard. Lot's of employers won't hire if they know. There are enough of us here though to find work and family though. We all take care of each other."

"I have a Godson back in London who'll likely transform when he's older. The people I grew up around are less than tolerant of 'non-humans'. What would it be like for a child over here?" He asked curiously.

"Is he wolf?"

Bran nodded.

"In St Louis there's a large pack. While he's still a child, he'd be protected by all. And it helps to have more people like you when you're learning control. Maybe you should talk one of the leaders of the pack."

"Try the coalition; it's a support/advocacy group run by Lycanthropes in this city. Micah will give you advice." Nathaniel added.

"Both his parents died not long ago and he's with his Grandmother at the moment, we're not sure if he'll transform. I'm not sure how she'll handle it if he does. Even if he doesn't transform, he'll still have a rough time of it." Bran shrugged feeling depressed at the thought that he wouldn't be able to see Teddy easily. He'd made arrangement with Pappy to ensure that he was watched but still.

-

Glad that furriness wasn't going to be a problem for their new friend, they dragged him into the store that Nate said was his favourite.

It seemed that Nate, Gregory and Stephen were all a bit leather obsessed as nearly all of the stores here specialised in leather and kink gear. The first store they'd entered, he stared in shock, blushed and nearly walked straight out as he saw the bondage gear displayed. Nate and Gregory snickered and grabbed onto his arms, dragging him further in.

Nathaniel quickly grabbed a pair of leather pants and top and pushed Bran into a changing room with strict instructions to try them on or else he'd find something shorter.

Bran changed into the clothes with a lot of effort, grumbling under his breath and said from the change room "You guys are having fun playing 'Make the Brit Blush' aren't you." He came out dressed in what Nate had selected. All three smirked back and leered at his body covered in snug leather pants with strategically placed zips and buckles and mesh and strap top.

"Very nice, you just need some high boots, a touch of eyeliner and mascara and a collar"

Bran disagreed rather vehemently at the idea of wearing a collar.

Nate just smirked and handed him some more styles to try on.

He did end up buying a warm lined leather jacket he really liked and the first pair of leather pants and several of the shirts that Nathaniel had insisted he try. At the cash register, he saw a few leather collars on display and ran his hand over a fur lined one curiously. He heard Nathaniel snickering beside and he blushed when the assistant smirked at him and handed him his bag. They wandered through a few more leather stores and managed to find some more gear that he thought he might try. After a while, it was kind of fun and he loved the feel of firm leather and the soft silks and mesh tops. He wasn't too bothered if he never wore them, he could afford it. And some of the materials felt good next to his skin.

He ended up buying some more leather pants, heaps of silk shirts, a vest, a gauntlet and a few pairs of boots that he fell in love with. Both pairs had silver buckles and a bit of extra height that he really liked.

"We're taking you out on the town tomorrow night. We'll pick you up at the hotel tomorrow at nine. I'll even do your makeup when we get there." Gregory winked at him.

Bran just blushed at the idea of wearing the clothes out in public but thought it'd be fun anyway.

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Updated: 7 October 2008

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